Things got tense this week as the show wound its way to Kousaka and Kaori’s trumpet rematch. We got a bunch of great scenes between almost all the big character pairs, some gorgeous outdoor shots and great use of lighting in general, and one more scene that was more romantically charged than anything in friggin’ Ore Monogatari!!, nevermind Nagato Yuki. Hell, this was more romantically charged than anything in Hyouka. It was practically more charged than anything in Spice and Wolf. This show isn’t fucking around, or maybe it is fucking around, and if it is that’s just a shame for the show itself. These characters deserve better than to be used as overt bait, especially considering how much the show otherwise respects them as people. Hopefully things will work out okay in the end.

Anyway, here’s my full post on the piece, that goes deep on plenty of the characters. And lots of notes below!

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Another extremely strong episode of Euphonium this week, though I know many people were understandably disappointed. Personally, I agree that the framing so far has seemed really supportive of some kind of romantic tension between Kumiko and Kousaka, but as long as the storytelling stays this good, I’m pretty fine with wherever this all goes. All I know is this episode made terrific use of all the character development so far, playing the characters against the main ideas in a way that felt natural and dramatically satisfying. Euphonium continues to impress.

Here’s my big ol’ episode post. And lots of notes below!

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A somewhat lesser episode of Euphonium this week, split evenly between friendship and anxiety. There were good moments scattered throughout, and the cast remains strong, but I guess basically anything would feel like a comedown after last week. My favorite scene here was easily the Kaori-Haruka centerpiece – in just a bare handful of scenes, those two have managed to define themselves and their friendship in sharp and poignant strokes. Their conversation here reflected a great deal of the central concerns of Euphonium, from friendship to personal excellence to the fear of wasting your precious time, and having them essentially be stuck as the unhappy counterweight to Kousaka is a really inspired choice. This show’s base variables are really damn good.

Here’s my full review. More notes below!

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So yeah, that was an all-time great. One of the best episodes I’ve ever seen this studio produce. God damn.

I wrote essentially a double-length review for this one, and I still barely even got to cover the tremendous acuity of shot framing and animation that elevated what was already a fundamentally well-written and wonderfully composed episode. This was basically the first episode where Kousaka got to come into her own as a character, and she made the most of it, dazzling Kumiko and basically everyone else through her proud, captivating personality. From the quieter moments with Hazuki and Midori, or Goto and Riko, up to that tremendous finale sequence, everything here was poignant and beautiful. KyoAni are playing in the stars again.

Here’s my full review. Notes below!

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Euphonium’s rainy day episode knocks it out of the park. Aoi’s long-hinted exiting of the band sends ripples all across the group, and Haruka is really given some time to shine as we dig into her very understandable leadership insecurities. We also got the first big questions regarding the almost-too-perfect Asuka, and Kumiko’s side neatly reflected all of this with her worries about losing one friendship and solace in the warmth of her new ones. I’ve got a fair number of notes on this one, since a lot of this episode’s strengths came in tiny details, so let’s get to it!

Here’s my full episode review. Notes below!

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